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I live my foodie life with one common theme. What can I do to make “x” (any given recipe) reflect the flavors of Nutella?

Okay this doesn’t exactly apply to things like fish or rice and grains or beans but most everything else (think sweets), it works. Just hear me out…

Oatmeal – add some chocolate and hazelnuts.

Pretzels – just dip those suckers in Nutella.

Cookies – definitely add some chocolate and hazelnuts. Maybe make some breakfast cookies.

Granola – add some chocolate and hazelnuts. It seems to be the only logical thing to do.

This recipe was inspired by the Joy the Baker Cookbook. But her recipe seemed like a little too much work, heating the wet ingredients in a saucepan and then combining with the dry…

Okay not really that much work but the less heating appliances to use the better. It’s been warmer (I’m using that term relatively, as in 75-80 degrees) in the city for multiple days now and most apartments don’t have AC, including mine. Oh and one of my fans broke. Thus apartment = sauna-esque.

Start with the dry ingredients. There’s oats under all that goodness along with almonds, coconut, cinnamon, cocoa powder, brown sugar, hazelnuts and wheat germ.

I decided to add hazelnuts and the wheat germ. Not to be confused with wheat cooties.

Okay, no one’s going to confuse them. I’m a CPA, we get 1-5 lames jokes a week. It comes with the title. I’ll cross number 1 off.

Add in the agave, oil, and vanilla. The cinnamon repels the liquid mixture… my nerd brain finds this fascinating.

Now, I can see why swallowing a tablespoon of cinnamon would be a terrible idea. Because there are soooo many other reasons why it’s a good idea. Kids these days….

Combine it all together. It kind of starts to look like no-bake cookie batter without the peanut butter and butter (a.k.a. healthier) and it’s just as tasty. Make sure its all coated before spreading in a thin layer on a baking sheet and popping in the oven.

It’s so easy and delicious by itself as a snack but perfect with yogurt or milk too!

P.S. I realize I need to get some new bowls, not everything works in a red bowl and well, that’s all I got. Or maybe I’ll make more plate foods. I’ll let you know how this develops.

Here’s how to do it:

Chocolate Nut Granola

Inspired by Joy the Baker

Ingredients:

3 c. Oats

1/2 c. Slivered Almonds

1/2 – 3/4 c. Chopped Hazelnuts

1 c. Coconut

1/2 c. Wheat Germ

2 tbsp. Cocoa Powder (unsweetened)

1 tsp. Cinnamon

1/4 c. Brown Sugar

2/3 c. Agave Nectar

1/3 c. Canola Oil

1/2 tsp. Vanilla

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line 1-2 large baking sheets with parchment paper or foil.

Combine all the dry ingredients and mix together. Add in the agave nectar and oil. Stir to thoroughly combine and coat all of the dry mixture.

Place on the baking sheets in a thin layer and bake until a deeper brown color, about 25 minutes. Flip the mixture 2-3 times during the baking process.

Let cool and then break apart. Serve as a snack by itself, with milk, or my favorite Greek yogurt. It will last in an airtight container for up to a week.

After living in the Seattle area for 2 years… I finally ventured to hike the infamous Mt. Si on Saturday! I went with a co-worker turned friend and another great friend and frequent hiking partner-in-crime/sweat.

4 miles up and 3,150 ft. of elevation gain gets you this. Well not this exactly… take the three of us out and that’s what you get.

We booked it up the mountain, climbing the first 4 miles in an hour and 40 minutes. Yeah that’s right, all 3,150 feet elevation gain. The average time up is about 2.5 hours. Let’s just say, no one passed us.

Talk about timing, we got up to the top and had a view of Mt. Rainier for about 5 minutes and then the clouds rolled in. (You can see it just faintly). The panting, “let’s uh talk uh later uh because uh I can’t uh breathe” moments, and unreal amounts of sweat (so sexy) were worth it.

The 4 miles down, we took a more stroll-like pace, laughing and chatting. I’d imagine the people going up were probably extremely perturbed at those “happy laughing girls.” We’re ladies… get it straight.

“Hey, you guys look at those pretty berries.”

“Oh, oh, and those moss-covered trees are so cool! I’ve got to take a picture.” It’s all about appreciating the flora and fauna, folks. AND I’m so turning into my mother, she’s never seen a rock that didn’t catch her eye.

What better to do after 8 miles? Make granola, duh.

If I had thought this through a little more, I would have made granola in time for a pre-hike breakfast but hindsight’s always 20-20, as long as I’ve got my contacts in.

Start with the dry goods. Oats, coconut, raisins, almonds, wheat germ (not pictured, I forgot about it until step 3), cinnamon, a dash of nutmeg and a dash of ginger.

Add in the wet. Agave nectar and canola oil.

Mix the dry and the wet ingredients all together. Is it weird that I thought this tasted good? Post-hike delusion maybe?

Spread it on a lined baking sheet in one thin layer and bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes until golden in color.

Serve with your favorite yogurt, by itself, or some nice cold milk.

Raisin Almond Granola

This is a combination and tweaking of multiple recipes so I could get what I really liked. 🙂

2 c. Rolled Oats (not quick cooking)

1 c. Slivered Almonds

1 c. Raisins

1/2 c. Wheat Germ

1 tsp. Cinnamon

Dash Nutmeg and Ginger (about 1/8 tsp. each)

1/2 c. Agave Nectar

1/3 c. Canola Oil

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Meanwhile, combine all of the dry ingredients. Add add the oil and agave and mix to combine. Make sure everything is well coated with the oil and agave mixture.

Spread in one thin layer onto a parchment (or foil) lined backing sheet and place in the oven. Bake for about 25-30 minutes until golden, mixing and turning 2-3 times during the cooking process.